You’re upset over a new diagnosis, and you reach for the package of cookies. You know you shouldn’t eat them; your blood sugar’s been like a roller coaster lately. But it’s as if you’re on auto-pilot. Upset + availability of cookies = inevitable.

Or, you’re so lonely that you’ll jump at any invitation to go out, even if it means being among unsavory people who engage in unhealthful, or possibly even dangerous activities.

Or, you are going through a particularly bad patch with your chronic illness. It’s flaring, you feel awful, and so you let your regular, more healthful routine, slide. Perhaps you let your home and good grooming habits slide, too. Pretty soon, you look like you feel, inside and out. And you begin to feel even worse because you do.

There are myriad ways that we can sabatoge our health. Yes, even if we say, “I want to do what’s best for me,” we might not act like it. And, before we know it, we might be in even worse shape than before, spiraling quickly farther and farther down.

One of the first things to do to stop from self-sabotage is to understand your tendancy to do it. Know that you use food to self-medicate sadness. Know that your loneliness might lead to less-than-good-for-you people. Turn a very stark, very objective mirror on yourself and soak in that truth, the one that’s hard to see, but necessary to understand.

Invite someone you know and trust to help you break unhealthful cycles. This is sort of like having a sponsor in a 12-step program. Reaching for the cookies? Reach out, instead, for your friend who will talk you down from them. Lonely and desperate? Spend the evening writing a long email or a letter to someone you love who’s far away. Or, pick up the telephone.

If you’re life has become a shambles, don’t even think of righting everything all at once. Prioritize. Plan. And take the clean-up one step at a time.

Obviously, we need to work closely with our medical team throughout our illness. This also means letting them know when you’ve gone (a bit?) overboard on the cholesterol or drifted away from your doctor-prescribed exercise plan. Good doctors can be wonderful cheerleaders, and help you shake off unhealthful habits.

The important thing in all of this is not to get down on yourself for self-sabotage. Habits can be changed. Our Lord is forgiving. And we should be forgiving of our foibles, too, so that we “go and sabotage no more!”

Maureen Pratt

Several years ago, Maureen Pratt earned her Master of Fine Arts in Theater Arts/Playwriting from UCLA's School of Theater, FIlm and Television. She expected to be writing scripts. God had other plans.

A few years after her graduation, Maureen was diagnosed with a life-threatening case of organ-involved lupus. Her life turned upside down as she grappled with the effects of the illness and other health conditions that ensued. She was no stranger to serious health challenges; even as a child, Maureen had survived numerous bouts of pneumonia, flu, and other infections. But lupus made her take a fresh look at her life goals - and took herlifelong, strong Catholic Christian faith and writing in a direction she'd never imagined.

Today, Maureen writes and speaks about walking with the Lord while living with chronic pain and illness. Her most recent book is "Don't Panic!: How to Keep Going When the Going Gets Tough (Franciscan Media). She is also the author of, "Peace in the Storm: Meditations on Chronic Pain & Illness" (Image Books/Randomhouse), "Beyond Pain: Job, Jesus, and Joy" (Twenty-Third Publications), "The First Year: Hypothyroidism, Second Edition" (Perseus) and "Taking Charge of Lupus: How to Manage the Disease and Make the Most of Your LIfe." She writes the syndicated column, "Living Well," for Catholic News Service, and has also written for Saint Anthony Messenger Magazine, Journey for Women Magazine, The Upper Room Magazine, LupusNow, and Arthritis Today. Maureen's health continues to be a challenge, however she feels honored to be able to bring her perspective, from experience and knowledge, to others.

"Good Days...Bad Days with Maureen Pratt" is a new way for Maureen to reach people who carry the burden of illness and pain in their lives, or who care for someone who does. Through the blog, she hopes to bring issues of health, wellness, and spirit into focus and, especially, inspire others that, no matter what health challenges, illness, or hardships they endure, each person can find a good way to realize the wonderful potential God has placed within each heart and soul.